Thoughts: The Doctor & Rose
by Francesca Montag
Summary: More thoughts that might have existed in the minds of the Doctor and his companion Rose Tyler. Includes stories from both the Ninth and Tenth Doctor.
1. Loophole & Pain

_Hello again everyone! I know that most of you have read my 30 Thoughts Rose and Doctor series and I received really great feedback for them, so thank you! What I'm doing here is almost the same except that those sets (the 30 Thoughts one) were unique (they were the first I wrote). I will be putting up different sets with different themes. I did not set a limit to them because I will be going back to school in about two weeks and so I won't be able to write longer stories. Doing this makes me able to update whenever I can. I hope you enjoy them!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who...if I did, David wouldn't be leaving, and Billie would never have left...actually, neither would have Chris. Also, if I did own Doctor Who, I would have a lot more money than I have now :D_

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**Thoughts: The Doctor & Rose**

Loophole

"Now Rose, you know that won't happen, I won't let it happen."

He wishes he could promise her that, but he has to leave a loophole. A way to do what he needs to do without any obligation. The loophole is always present, always lingering in the background…unforgotten, but always there, just in case. How he would love it if he could simply say to her, "We will never be apart. I promise." The Doctor wanted so desperately sometimes to say those words to her. But no, that damn Time Lord loophole always has to be there.

She stares up at him, tears in her eyes. All she can do is nod.

Pain

She had never felt so hurt. So heartbroken. So guilty, alone…or useless.

Rose was hurt by the Doctor's actions, hurt because he left her and Mickey without an explanation…without even caring what was to become of them.

She was heartbroken because the being she loved so dearly, so whole-heartedly, left her without hesitation to save and spend forever with another woman. He was willing to give _another_ woman _her_ forever.

Rose felt guilty because her pain reminded her of what she did everyday to Mickey. And although she didn't love him the way he wanted her to – she'd never wish anyone the pain she was feeling now.

She felt alone. She needed her best friend to tell her it would all be okay. She needed him to hug the loneliness away – but he wouldn't say it and he wouldn't touch her. He was busy mourning his own love.

Rose felt useless. She couldn't nurse the Doctor's hurt as she didn't know how to cure her own.

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I'll try to keep this up for as long as I can. Knowing people enjoy them will definitely encourage me. Thanks for reading :)


	2. Blush & Spoon

_Hi everyone! Just wanted to let you know that if you've reviewed my stories and haven't gotten a reply it is because I'm having a bit of a problem with the review reply function on here. Is this only happening to me? Anyway, I am receiving and reading your reviews, thank you so much! I will reply as soon as things are fixed :)_

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Blush

There were many things the Doctor loved about Rose Tyler. Like the way she would press her tongue against her teeth when she was about to laugh or when she was teasing him, which was quite often. Or the way she cared about everyone, whether it be human or alien. He loved the way her hand fit perfectly in his, even after the regeneration. And the way she would pout when she wanted her way. He loved that she'd blush when he'd catch her staring at him. The pink tint under her fair skin made his hearts hitch and falter, only to end up beating four times as fast.

Spoon

"Doctor," stated a rather confused and exasperated Rose, "we do have spoons, you know." The Doctor was currently licking his ice cream from his cup without the use of utensils. "It's more fun this way," he mumbled, his mouth full of chocolate ice cream. The Doctor then dug his face into the cup again, only to get some on his nose. Rose giggled at the endearing sight, causing him to swallow the chunk of ice cream and stare at her questioningly. Without a word, she grabbed a napkin from the nearby counter and reached over to him, gently wiping the tip of his nose. It was only a matter of seconds until she realized that the Doctor's eyes had widened slightly and were now fixed on her own. Her own eyes widened in surprise to his reaction. "You…you had some on your nose," she whispered. She didn't understand it until later that the Doctor had just realized how domestic they'd become. But judging from the mad grin he gave her after, Rose was willing to believe that maybe he didn't mind it too much.

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_Thank you for reading! BTW, I'm still taking requests for word prompts. More of you should be seeing your prompts soon :)_

_Blush – suggested by xbakiyalo_

_Spoon – suggested by MajorSamanthaCarter & Byakushi-Kun_


	3. Eyes & Sparkle

Eyes

He heard or read once that the eyes were the windows of the soul. He also remembered rolling his eyes and muttering something about "oversensitive apes." But it wasn't until he met Rose Tyler that he realized that there may be some truth to those words. Rose's eyes, apart from being…well, rather nice to look into…were always quite expressive.

They told him when she was happy – he'd see a twinkle in them. They told him when she was upset – they'd lose their twinkle and gain an emptiness that he would then try to dissipate. They also told him when she was furious…usually at him…and usually because of something stupid he'd done – they would glare at him, almost as if on fire. But most of all, they would tell him how proud she was of him and how much she cared about him. Because he knew, of course he did, that when she had said forever…she meant it.

Sparkle

"How…how do they _do_ that?" whispered Rose, stumbling on her words, their actual meaning forgotten in the glorious sight in front of her. She turned to look at the Doctor who was smiling sweetly at her. "You mean the sparkles they emit? Well…it's what they were born to do," he stated in a revered tone. The Doctor then looked back up at the sky and whispered, almost to himself, "Some…_things_…were never meant to be ordinary." He wasn't looking at her as he said it…but something in his voice made Rose blush. Letting the warmth engulf her skin, she reached for the Doctor's hand, intertwining his cool fingers with her own.

_

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_I hope you enjoyed that! Thank you for the suggestions, more are always welcomed :)_

_Eyes – suggested by MajorSamanthaCarter_

_Sparkle – suggested by Tessa27_


	4. Hands & Crystal

Hands

The Doctor had held hands before.

Hand holding was almost a universal symbol for reassurance and guidance. He didn't know much else to the meaning of his hands intertwined with another's. That was until he met an ordinary Earth girl who possessed a penchant for chips and the color pink. There was plenty of direction and support when it came to holding hands with Rose. However, it seemed more often than not that she was the one doing the reassuring and guiding.

Then there were the other feelings…the joy, even possessiveness he would feel in holding her hand. He'd drown in the touch of her skin on his as if no other had done the same. That's when he began to understand that a hand wasn't just a hand…not when it belonged to the right person.

Crystal

Rose shivered, and braced herself against the bitter light wind. She couldn't help but feel the cold from within her large coat, long multi-colored scarf and purple knitted gloves. Her body was aching heavily, but she was enthralled with the sight in front of her: a frozen wave, solidly suspended above them. A tiny part of her knew she should be afraid – it was so quiet and who knew how long that wave would remain unbroken? But a larger part of her stood dumbfounded in its beauty. With her hair slick with moisture, and red cheeks, she pulled off her purple glove. Rose could feel the Doctor watching her. She also knew he was tempted to tell her to put her glove back on, to keep warm. But like Rose, he knew that there were no safe bets in this life of theirs and so it was best to enjoy the splendor while it lasted. The cold stung her hand as she placed it flat against the ice. Bubbles from the waves were frozen in time beneath her fingertips. A large smile grew on her frosted lips. They were chapped and likely to bleed, but she couldn't care less. Rose looked back up at the Doctor, the water droplets frozen in his hair, making them look like crystals. She forced her eyes away from his hair down to his time-worn face. His lips were mimicking her own, a solid smile and twinkling eyes staring back at her.

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_I must say…Crystal is my favorite so far…it came out of no where!_

_Thanks to _elvespiratesandcowboysohmy_ for both prompts!_


	5. Forget & Laundry

Forget

"Need some forgettin' there, mate?" yelled out the woman in the small green box, standing a bit higher than him, looking down at his ragged self. The Doctor looked up into her round face, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion. "What?" he asked, his voice almost a whisper. She smiled brightly at him. "I asked," she repeated," if you need some forgettin'. Something got ya down? I can tell, by the look of your eyes, mate." The Doctor refused to acknowledge the stated fact, choosing instead to question the woman, being ever so curious.

"What do you mean by 'need some forgetting'?"

She smiled widely at him, her teeth gleaming in the darkness. She reached underneath the counter and pulled out a small plastic-looking patch, decorated in green letters spelling out "FORGET." The Doctor's eyes widened, "You're selling…_drugs_…to help people forget?" He was surprised and sickened by the idea. How far had medication been developed…so far that they were promising true and seemingly permanent effects.

_Well…maybe not that far_, he thought.

Lost in his ocean of ideas and theories, the woman kept on. "Go on, this one's on me. Anyone with that look on their face needs a bit of a pick-me-up." She pushed the patch, tightly secured between her fingers, down to him, allowing him the opportunity to take it from her grasp.

And for one second, one teensy moment…the Doctor thought of how wonderful it would be…just to forget. If he forgot Rose entirely, he could forget how much it hurt to lose her…how much it still hurts to not have her by his side, her hand in his. But as quickly as the thought came, it vanished because if the Doctor had never met Rose Tyler, he certainly wouldn't be the person…the _man_…he is today.

And so, the Doctor looked into the woman's round face, turned on his heel and left her frowning in the dark.

Laundry

"Hey Doctor, can we go to mum's? I have some laundry to do…" asked Rose one day while they were floating in the Vortex. The Doctor looked up from his sprawled position on the floor and took the Sonic Screwdriver out from between his clenched teeth. "Why would we have to go to your mum's for that?" he retorted. Rose looked at him incredulously; taking in his daftly wonderful face, big ears and nose…there was nothing she didn't like from that face. Brushing the thoughts aside, she smiled sweetly down at him, hands on her hips. "Well, I know you wear the same ol' clothes each day, but some of us need to change every once in awhile…" She let her tongue press against her teeth. Oh, how she loved to tease him. The Doctor sighed heavily, placed the sonic screwdriver in his jacket pocket and proceeded out of the console room and into the corridors, all the while making a hand motion that Rose took to mean she should follow him.

And there, all the way in the back, past the bins and hidden behind a large curtain, the Doctor opened the door to a small and tidy laundry room. "We have a laundry room?" questioned Rose, surprise written in her features. The Doctor leaned against the door frame, his large grin plastered on his face. "Of course we do? What, you think I travel without clean clothes? Laundries can get expensive Rose," he answered, annoyingly matter-of-factly. She nudged him teasingly with her elbow.

"Alright Doctor, well, do you have anything that needs washed?"

The words were normal enough, at least that's what Rose thought. But the Doctor's grin fell, melting off his features. His eyes widened as he stared at her. Eventually realizing that he was, indeed, staring at her, he coughed -clearing the imaginary lump in his throat and mumbled something about the wiring underneath the console. He left her staring after him, confused.

Perhaps, the words were too normal, she thought.

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_Thank you for reading! _

_Laundry - suggested by IdiotJello_


	6. Scent & Coin

Scent

Banana cupcakes during the coronation. Mistletoe at Torchwood. Apple grass in New Earth. Ash on Satellite 5. The burning of Gallifrey.

The Doctor had smelled many things – both the glorious and the horrid.

So why, why out of all of those did Rose's scent have to be the one that lingered?

Six months had passed and her scent remained everywhere on the Tardis. Her unique scent of Cherry Chapstick and…something completely, indescribably _Rose. _The closest he could come to comprehend it would be to say that it was the sweetness of her skin and the musk of her sweat – a product of all their running. He was confused as to how he could still smell it after all this time. And before he could go ask Martha if she smelled it too, it occurred to him that it might only exist in his mind, in his memories and hearts – where she'd always be.

Coin

Rose understood how hard his life was.

He had to make decisions.

Sometimes they were fairly easy, like where to go next or whether to run or hide. But usually they were the hard decisions: who was left to die, who he could save. They were filled with his sacrifices – unable to keep anything for himself. Indeed, the Doctor's life was like a coin, he could only go one of two ways. It didn't matter how very clever he was, how full of mercy – the universe only worked two ways for the Doctor – what he wanted and what he _had_ to do….and no matter how much he flipped the coin, it never turned up in his favor.

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_Oh, I'm depressing myself. Lol. Sorry about that._

_Thanks for reading!_


	7. Kiss & Gum

Kiss

The Doctor knew it was irrational, the emotions that were coursing through him. He didn't hate the boy, in fact, he was quite proud of him. But he couldn't help but to feel ignored, pushed aside. Of course, he understood, Rose was losing one of her oldest friends. But too many things had happened and quite a bit of those were still burning through the Doctor's memory – like Rose and Mickey's haste kiss. He knew he had no right to feel the jealousy that was threatening to scorch him. Rose wasn't _his_…not really. Oh, but how he wanted her to be.

Gum

"What is that smell?" asked the Doctor one day. Rose, rolling her eyes, remained quiet and continued reading. She was used to the Doctor smelling and licking all types of things. It was easier to just humor him as he wouldn't feel right until he investigated it himself. "Seriously Rose, what is that smell?" he started to sniffing the air around the console. From her perch on the console chair, she finally looked up. "I don't smell a thing Doctor," she stated and opened her book again, chewing her gum quietly. She found her spot on the page and continued reading. Absentmindedly popping a bubble, she suddenly realized after a few moments that it had gone rather quiet in the room. Furrowing her brow, she looked up to find the Doctor standing in front of her, hovering. She startled a bit, almost losing her page. "What are you doing?" she asked, staring at him confusedly. He had his brainy specs on and was looking at her rather curiously. Then, slowly, he lowered his face down near hers, until his nose was practically touching her cheek. Rose felt herself flush, heat rising up in her cheeks. She dared not move, but her heart…her heart was beating ferociously. She noticed that he was trying very hard to keep his distance. For as close as his face was to hers, the rest of him was not…much to Rose's disappointment.

Closing his eyes, he inhaled deeply. His lips parted slightly and Rose's nerves tingled, her lips involuntarily parting as well, mirroring the Doctor's. A chill spread throughout her skin. She gripped the book tightly, for fear of trembling so much she'd let it fall, ruining his concentration.

"Banana. Your breath…it smells like banana," he whispered, his breath falling on her skin, making her shiver even more.

She sat stunned for a moment, his scent drowning her. "Uh, yea' it's this gum…I'm….chewing…" her voice sounded hoarse, she coughed to clear it.

"Mmmm," he hummed, his face closing in a bit more.

Rose felt her heart skip.

As if he could hear it too, he woke up from his trance and straightened up.

"Yeah, well, have to…check the wires." And just like that, he resumed his natural, mechanical demeanor.

Her heart having since recovered, albeit slightly disappointed, Rose sighed and opened her book, detaching it carefully from her tight grip.

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_Oh, how the Doctor likes his bananas. And licking things. And smelling things. And Rose. Ha. _

_Thanks for reading!_


	8. Sun & Jacket

Sun

He had one weakness.

She was a pretty, humble, very human blond shop girl from London.

Rose Tyler was the reason he asked twice.

Why he all of sudden felt like leaving their destination up to another.

Why he thought of someone else's dreams and fantasies instead of his own first for once.

She made him feel again. Made him live.

If it was between this ordinary, fantastic human girl and the universe – he wasn't so sure how he'd decide anymore.

She made him careless, a bit arrogant. Even if she hadn't meant to.

He'd do more than just burn up a sun.

And he would have crumbled those two worlds, just to be with her again.

He'd do it for her.

The Doctor killed himself once to save Rose.

He almost did it again so he could feel his arms around her. Running straight ahead, unaware of the world around him.

Because, as his weakness, when she was around…it was only her that existed.

And in his selfishness, in what he wanted to succumb to each time, he wanted to believe that she existed only for him.

Jacket

Rose couldn't believe what she just said.

"No."

She shook her head, shut her eyes, and hoped against hope that when she opened them again, he'd be there waiting for her answer.

She wanted to rewind time.

Rose opened her eyes to the vacant sight in front of her. A sudden tugging on her waist woke her from her reverie. Mickey was looking up at her, helplessly. She sighed softly at the sight of his large brown eyes.

Life wasn't so bad, but life with the Doctor – that was surely something to behold.

Sighing again, rather heavily this time, she tugged Mickey up by his jacket and turned from what would have changed her life…and her…for the better.

She had taken all of two steps when she heard it. That impossible sound. Rose turned back quickly, her blond hair flipping and twisting about.

_It can't be_, she thought, an inkling of hope in her chest.

There, no longer empty, stood the blue box – the most beautiful sight she had ever seen. Rose stood there, elation and shock fighting on her features when the Doctor opened the door.

He crossed his arms across his chest, leaned against the doorway of his ship and stared intently into Rose's honey colored eyes.

She felt her heart stumble.

"Did I mention, it also travels through time?" and with a slight smirk, he disappeared inside once more.

It wasn't the helpless boyfriend that was tugging at her that made Rose run toward the Tardis. It wasn't her bland life or the fact that the ship traveled through time.

No, it was none of those things.

It was the fact that he came back.

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_I like how these turned out :)__ Although, I must give credit of inspiration for "Jacket" to _elvespiratesandcowboysohmy_. Her story and our many messages gave me the idea :) __Thank you!_

_And thank you for reading!_


	9. Button & Girl

Button

The Doctor pushed the button.

Who knew that a simple clicking sound of a button being pressed could damage him so dearly? He'd made tough, horrible choices before. It seemed he was making them everyday really.

But this choice was different. This one hurt. The pain streamed down, falling to his fingertips.

It was different because _she_ was down there. He could have very well have sentenced Rose to death. But he refused to accept that possibility. She was quick, brilliant. She'd make it.

He heard the bulkheads closing heavy on the cement floor. Instantly, he called out to her, "Rose, did you make it?"

_Please, tell me you made it._

Quietly, her small, sweet voice streamed through, "Sorry, was a bit slow." The emotions that had surged through him when he heard the click of the button _he_ pressed had nothing on the guilt he felt wash over him just then.

"It's not your fault Doctor."

He winced. She could be dead any second and she was trying to make him feel better. Of course it was his fault.

The Doctor heard the Dalek speak…that terrible voice that haunted his memories. Then came the inevitable excruciating laser sound and he ripped the ear piece away, vaguely registering the resulting pain.

He'd killed her.

She'd saved him, in more ways than one, she'd trusted him.

And he killed her.

It was like he was losing his people all over again.

He didn't know his hearts could still break.

Girl

She wanted to tell him.

Rose wanted the Doctor to know how much she enjoyed traveling with him, how much she cared about him and how much she…loved him.

It felt odd thinking the words to herself. Not because they weren't true or because they felt wrong. In fact, they felt _so_ right. She didn't know for how long she had loved him. It felt like she'd been doing it forever.

But if she had to pinpoint a moment where everything…every feeling and thought had become crystal clear…it had to be the moment he sent her back home from Satellite 5.

The fear of never seeing him again…the thought of knowing he was dying somewhere in the future and doing it alone, that's when it all became so very clear, how much she truly loved the Doctor.

So, she went back and saved the man she loved, only to end up killing him.

And now, she had new, new Doctor and she could still feel that love tugging at her solitary human heart. She wanted nothing more, but to tell him.

But each time her mouth opened to voice the emotion, something always ended up mucking it.

Sarah Jane. Mickey. Reinette. Cybermen. Impossible planets. A lonely little girl.

No matter, she would think each time, I still have tomorrow.

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_I've been accused of breaking hearts. I'm breaking my own it seems. All my stories are bittersweet lol (she exclaims, just noticing). _

_Either way, I'm so glad you all are enjoying them :) Thank you for reading. _


	10. Run

Run

He'd been doing it for as long as he could remember. He was always running away. The Doctor had run away from his planet and people. He ran after the job was done. Sometimes others ran with him. Mostly, he ran on his own.

But then he met Rose. And he ran with a hand to hold. He had saved her and she saved him more. Eventually, he learned to walk, still holding that same hand. After losing her, he couldn't run fast enough.

But for all that time that he spent running away, wishing silently that he could run faster – it didn't compare to right now.

It had been too long since he'd seen her. And it felt like the first time and like he'd never stopped. There were no words. His regeneration was full of words - meaningful and useless. But it wasn't the time for words. He ran. His legs couldn't move fast enough. The distance was excruciating. His hearts pumped harder, faster against his chest. He couldn't feel the pain. The world melted around him.

No one else existed. Only this moment. Only him and most certainly, only Rose.

Only one word occurred to him now.

Run.

***

She had wanted to run away from so much in her life.

Home. School. Boyfriends.

But when she did run, it was pointless – there was nothing to run to.

And then she met the Doctor. Running took a whole new meaning for Rose. It was the first thing he'd said to her. She had been running with him ever since.

It was better with two. Better with a hand to hold.

The day she stopped running, the day she lost him – she felt her heart stop. But she didn't quit. No, she'd run forever if it meant she could see him again.

And now, she couldn't believe he was there. Right there. And she couldn't get to him fast enough. Rose had spent an eternity waiting for this moment, almost training for it. Her legs couldn't move any faster. Her heart was pumping dangerously hard, but it barely registered. She had been without him for too long. Anticipation lingered and exploded on her skin, she needed to feel his arms around her. Needed to feel the double beating of his hearts. Nothing else mattered. All she needed was him. All she wanted was him.

His first word to her repeated in her mind, a silent prayer that never let her quit.

Run.

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_*sigh* How much do I love the Doctor and Rose? Let me count the ways._

_How many times could I pinch the writers of the show? *glares*_

_Credit for this prompt goes to the always wonderful _elvespiratesandcowboysohmy,_ thank you!_


	11. Human & Tears

Human

The Doctor had forgotten, however momentarily, how fantastic humans could really be. For a species so tiny in the universe, so miniscule, they were strong and they survived. But he had forgotten all that.

It took one nineteen year old London girl to remind him of how wonderful humans could be.

Everything Rose did was so human. From her fits of laughter to caring for the Ood on the Impossible Planet. But the most human act Rose had ever committed was to show him how it was to care again. Not just save people, but really care about them. How the most ordinary person could be exceptional. How the most mundane could struggle and win. How the forgotten could save the world in the end. She also showed him how it felt to have a friend again, to have someone to consider.

And Rose showed him how it could hurt to love, but also, how love, even when impossible, could overcome anything when you let it.

Tears

She would do anything for him.

Those words were thrown around so frivolously, Rose knew that. But she meant them. Everything those words meant and signified, she stood by them.

Save the universe. Abandon her life and any prospects of a normal one. Die trying to save him. She'd already done those things and she was willing to do so much more.

The thought terrified Rose sometimes – how much she was willing to give up for him. Oh, but she never regretted it. What she was given in return was so much more.

So even when her heart was breaking and tears were flooding and burning her eyes as he disappeared…disappeared without saying the words that haunted her, Rose knew she wouldn't change a thing.

Because if this was the result of loving a Time Lord, if it meant she would fall apart, but could keep all those memories, all the hugs and the hand holding…

so be it.

Time and distance didn't change a thing.

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_*sigh*_

_I will never get over Doomsday._

_Thanks for reading!_

_Human – prompt idea goes, yet again, to _elvespiratesandcowboysohmy – _thank you again! You catch them before I can even realize they're there. Heh._


	12. Right & Shy

Right

Rose had said it so easily, the words flowed from her lips like honey.

"I'm never gonna leave you."

Here it was, possibly the end of the world as they knew it, and his hearts floated, engulfed in emotions, in such human feelings for this once ordinary shop girl from London.

Oh, who was he kidding? She was never ordinary.

Rose Tyler was born to shine.

The Doctor felt his hearts stumble at her words. She never wanted to leave him. And he knew that it was impossible, but oh, he loved impossible.

And right now? Impossible sounded pretty good.

Shy

"Blimey!" exclaimed the Doctor.

Feeling awkward and unusually shy, Rose could only respond with a smile, "Don't laugh."

"You look beautiful."

The words made her heart stop.

Such simple, gorgeous words, but they weren't coming from some ordinary bloke, they were coming from the Doctor. They made her blush and caused her smile to widen. The Time Lord had been in existence for quite some time, she imagined, seen all of time and space by the looks of it…and _he_ thought _she_ was beautiful.

"... considering."

Rose's smile fell slightly, "Considering what?"

"That you're human."

The words lost some of their luster, but the compliment still rang in her ears.

And she only pretended not to notice that smile he was trying to hide under the console.

* * *

_Dedicated to _elvespiratesandcowboysohmy_, just to make her smile!_

_Thanks for reading!_


	13. Friendship & Wolf

Friendship

It felt like he was letting her down time after time these days.

It didn't seem to matter that he saved worlds and their peoples. Of course, it mattered to her; she wouldn't expect any less from him. But the Doctor couldn't see the good he did when it caused Rose so much pain.

Royalty and children were saved, timelines kept in tact.

But their friendship? Her heart? At times, it felt like it was in shambles.

He had promised her mother that she'd be safe…

But safe from who?

Wolf

She thought she knew him.

The Doctor and Rose had spent so much time together, running and saving others, watching planets crumble, seeing stars being born – it felt as if it had always been that way. And in that time, Rose thought that she had gotten to know him. Oh, she knew there were a lot of things she didn't know, but that was okay because no one else knew them either.

Well, that was before.

Before the wolf. Before the school and 18th century France.

Now Rose wondered if she had ever actually known him. The Doctor's hugs and touches lingered as did his gazes at her. Each act left her burning to her core. But unfortunately, each touch, and feeling left her that much more confused.

It hurt to be around him, but it hurt even worse to be without him.

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_Don't get too sad! Read the next chapter :)_

_Thanks for reading!_


	14. Coral & Mortgage

Coral

The Doctor paced around the console, intensely looking at absolutely nothing, just to have something to do. He stopped suddenly, leaning against the coral fixture, his arms tightly across his chest.

He looked up at Rose, who was sitting, quietly watching him from the console chair. She looked confused, but remained quiet.

"Rose?"

"Yeah, Doctor?"

"I…I…," why was this so hard, he asked himself. His palms were sweaty, his throat had gone dry. He was a Time Lord, and what he wanted to say…they were only words.

Of course they weren't.

He took a deep breath, "Rose, I…"

"I know Doctor." She smiled at him, warm and reassuring. The Doctor felt his mouth agape, his cheeks burning.

Of course she knew.

Mortgage

"We could…I dunno…get one…together."

Rose regretted the words as soon as they had escaped her. Had she just asked the Doctor to live with her if they were stuck on a planet without the Tardis? Had she gone insane all of a sudden? She just asked the Doctor, the Oncoming Storm, Mr. "Don't You Dare Make this Domestic" to live with her, to share a _mortgage_ with her. She dared not look at him, already feeling the rejection washing over her.

"Stuck with you? Yeah, that's not so bad."

Rose whipped around to look at him, not believing the words that had flowed between his lips. She expected him to take the words back, to cover it up with a joke or a rambling. She assumed he'd look away from her, or jump up and run.

But when she looked at him, he stared straight back at her, his eyes flooding her senses, his lips curled into a sweet smile. Rose smiled widely in return, her teeth glistening against the harsh light of the ship.

Yeah, that's not bad at all, she thinks.

* * *

_Hope these two make up for the really sad ones I posted prior. Lol. I was in a melancholy mood, what can I say?_

_Thanks for reading!_


	15. Name & Day

Name

What's in a name?

A name can chase away the darkest fear. It can create them too.

It can bring back the fondest memories and sometimes wish it could all go away.

It can make you laugh and cry. Too soon, too late.

It could make you wonder. Think of the possibilities.

Make you wish for the past and desire a different future.

Make you cringe.

Make you plead and forgive.

Make you seethe with anger. Curse creation.

Make you fear and care just the same.

Can make you laugh and tease.

And it can make you love. Make you tremble and forget in the best and worst of ways.

Day

Do it for me.

Rose wanted so very much to be selfish.

She wanted the Doctor to be hers. It was stupid to think, to believe that such a great man could belong to her. Only her.

She wanted to ask him to be hers. That frivolous young girl in her wanted to be childish. Wanted to ask him to promise to always be with her. To do it for her.

When such thoughts would invade her mind, after a particularly emotional day usually, she would push them right back. The Doctor wasn't hers. He was no one's. Sometimes it seemed that even he didn't have the pleasure.

No, he belonged to the universe, to the whole of time. Rose could only hope to enjoy him for as long as she was allowed to. Would he have done it for her? She didn't think so. If he had, he wouldn't be the man she grew to love so much. The man who grabbed her hand and saved the world each and every time.

* * *

_I'm very nostalgic right now. I was watching Father's Day last night *sigh*_

_Thanks for reading :)_


	16. Ears & Light

Ears

If only he could go back and give her the man she fell in love with. Daft ol' face, ears like wings, wearing that leather jacket like it was a shield. He was prettier now, but he was a lot more things than he was before. A jumble of emotions he was, and with a tendency to lick and touch – very dangerous qualities in a Time Lord. He was also quite prone to making mistakes. He'd committed one after the other since his most recent regeneration.

And now, Rose looked at him with eyes so full of hurt and confusion. He didn't know how to fix it – how to make it better. He wanted to reach out to her, pull her close and say the perfect thing, the way he used to be able to. He may have been older, damaged and broken then, but he was able to give Rose _something_ more than he seemed to in this younger body.

It wasn't because he didn't want to. The problem was that he wanted nothing more than to do just that.

Light

The Doctor wanted her to move on, to find her own adventures in the kind of life he could never have.

She wanted to. Rose tried every day to be that kind of a person for him. But it grew so hard each day. No matter how hard, however, it didn't stop her from trying when the morning light hit her face. She didn't stop crying at night, and it didn't stop her from missing him terribly.

Still, she got up each day, brushed her teeth, pulled on her office clothes, and ate her mother's dinners. At night she dreamt of the Tardis, of the worlds she had the luck in seeing. And every night and every day, she saw his face, both old and new and she forced herself to push forward a little harder.

Because Rose knew he was out there, it may be a different sky and a different world, but he was out there and as long as he was, she would be here – thinking of him.

* * *

_I feel like I'm being harsh on Ten. I love him though, really! Extremely, actually. I just miss Nine sometimes, yeah? And will I ever get over GITF or Doomsday? Nope. Lol._

_Thanks for reading :)_


	17. Baby

_I had never thought of the idea of Rose and the Doctor having a baby together before I joined this site. _

_Why? I don't know. They seemed pretty amazing together and I have a habit of being satisfied with what I have. But now that I've read stories about the possibility, it made me wonder if they ever actually thought of it during the course of the show. _

_This is what happens when you're left unsatisfied. Lol. _

_

* * *

  
_

Baby

The Doctor tried not to think about it. He really did.

He found it difficult to, however, whenever her smile stunned him and when that incessant lock of hair would fall in front of her honey-colored eyes. Staring at her had become a habit he'd inherited from his Ninth self and it didn't show any signs of ceasing.

He'd been a father once. A long time ago.

But he never remembered wanting to _be _a father. It was just what…happened. He didn't regret it, of course not, he just never really thought of it the way humans seem to think of it. Sometimes, the Doctor wanted that sort of life. He was curious about it. Meeting on sidewalk, getting in a taxi and grabbing some chips at 2 in the morning…it sounded amazing and impossible.

And when he looked at her, it was getting harder to stop picturing a tiny version of her cradled in his arms…with darker hair, beautiful eyes and that same smile. The Doctor could never get tired of the universe and its riches and surprises…but he couldn't help but wonder about the other treasures the universe could offer him.

***

Rose never tired of looking at him.

Sometimes, she'd have to remember who she was staring at. He'd caught her staring at him more than once. It was embarrassing, to say the least. She couldn't help it though.

When she'd look at him, she'd picture things. Amazing, wondrous things that should be in the thoughts of ordinary girls living ordinary lives on Earth. They shouldn't be in her mind, a girl who traveled on a time-traveling ship with a wonderfully impossible man. Looking at him made her dream impossible dreams. Dreams that she shouldn't be wanting.

Rose wondered how it would be if it _could_ be. Would they live on the Tardis? She was fine with that. She'd go anywhere with him. She'd already been to the ends of the universe by his side. Seen the world burn. That was the beginning.

The dream of him being hers caused her body to flush with warmth. Rose couldn't help but smile at the thought. The idea of a little one with his intelligence, curiosity and strength. Would he have dark, uncontrollable, adorable hair? Would he have crystal blue eyes or dark, chocolate ones? Would he have a penchant for a leather jacket or a suit? It didn't matter. They were one in the same.

She knew it was impossible. Things like that didn't and couldn't happen.

But she liked impossible.

* * *

_Dedicated to my newborn niece, quite a fighter she is._

_Also dedicated to _elvespiratesandcowboysohmy _for not forgetting about me!_

_Thanks for reading!_


	18. Pool & Curtain

_Heh. I felt like having a giggle. _

_Enjoy!_

* * *

Pool

They are bloody evil.

The Doctor was staring at the sky, not because he wanted to admire the sprinkle of stars that lingered there, but so he wouldn't have to pay attention to what he knew was going on underneath them.

He knew that if he looked in front of him rather than above, he would see Rose. In a bathing suit. In the bloody pool.

And so…pools are bloody evil.

Oh yes.

Curtain

Don't look. Don't look. Don't look.

Rose kept repeating the words in hope that she would actually listen to them. She drew her eyes everywhere but where she wanted them to be. Up at the ceiling. Down at her feet. Sideways at the potted plant in the corner of the room. Anywhere but _there_.

She could feel her heart thumping harshly against her chest.

"Rose?" called the Doctor.

Instinctively, she looked in front of her. The forbidden place.

Rose couldn't answer back, her eyes fixed on his form, the form of his silhouette as he changed out of his suit.

Bloody curtain.

* * *

_Thanks for reading!_


	19. Awkward

Awkward

The Doctor had never wanted to run away as badly as he wanted to today.

He stared at the two women who had invaded his life at one point or another. One from his past, the inquisitive Sarah Jane Smith and his present, Rose Tyler. He looked on at his current companion, pride and…something _else_…shining in his eyes. She was currently looking away from him, her lips in what seemed like a permanent pout. She was absentmindedly playing with the cords of her sweater, her blond hair streaming down in front of her face. Sarah Jane was talking to Mickey, something about being a tin dog.

The Doctor knew Rose was upset at learning that she hasn't been the only one in his life. But how could he explain that even if she wasn't technically the _only_ one, she actually was.

He felt his hearts beating ruthlessly, causing his chest to tighten. What would he do if she ever left him? The thought caused a strange sensation to pass up the base of his throat, and pain to tingle at his fingertips.

The Doctor didn't understand what was happening…what _had _been happening since he first met her. All he really understood was that since his newest regeneration, things had turned rather…awkward.

Just then, Rose looked up at him with her warm eyes. Through her unhappiness, she let a half smile reach her soft lips. He answered her attempt with a grin of his own. Her lips, her eyes, her very presence was causing a heat to reach his cheeks. The Doctor coughed suddenly, dislodging the nonexistent lump in his throat.

Things were definitely awkward.

***

Rose didn't know if she should laugh or scream.

The Doctor was currently dancing around in front of her, Cassandra having taken over his body. Rose wanted that woman out of the Doctor. She knew how it felt to not be in control of what was yours, and she needed him to be here right now.

But he did look kind of funny.

"Goodness me, I'm a man! _Yum!_ So many parts...and hardly used…," exclaimed Cassandra.

Well, how would she know that, thought Rose defensively. Well, he had just regenerated, she reminded herself. She had to get Cassandra out before she got too happy exploring the Doctor's body.

She watched Cassandra make the Doctor's body move in ways he would never even think of moving. Rose knew it was wrong to look at his body the way she was, she should be looking for a way to help him. She couldn't help it though; this new Doctor seemed a lot more comfortable in his skin than her first Doctor had been.

Cassandra using the Doctor's voice interrupted her thoughts, "Oh, he's slim. And a little bit foxy! You thought so too. I've been inside your head, you've been _looking_... you _like_ it."

Rose felt the heat of the blood rushing to her cheeks. She wanted to deny the thought, but it was apparent that it was written all over her face. She fidgeted, feeling the awkwardness in the air.

Rose hoped the Doctor wouldn't remember this.

She had a feeling she wouldn't be so lucky.

* * *

_Thanks to _Ewoke6096 _for the prompt!_

_Thanks for reading!_


	20. Sofa & Mirror

Sofa

The Doctor wasn't very fond of visiting Jackie.

This was, of course, not news. His most current regeneration was more patient, a bit more tolerant of these visits, very much unlike his Ninth self. What could he say, really? He didn't enjoy being slapped nor the anticipation and worry of it happening again. But he would take Rose to visit her mother because she wanted to and he couldn't deny her as much.

Still, visiting Jackie scared him. It was more than the slap anticipation, he didn't like the possibility of Rose being persuaded to stay.

Each time they'd land outside the Powell Estate, the Doctor would get that heavy feeling in his stomach. It made him feel like it would be the last time he'd see Rose walk through the Tardis doors, the last time he'd see her smile or feel her hand in his. As much as he was a powerful Time Lord, this so human girl could crumble him with just the words, with the threat of staying behind.

He'd panic each time, always wanting to hold on to her. What made it worth it, however, were the quiet moments. The moments where Jackie would be off in the kitchen or dozing off on the nearby armchair. The Doctor and Rose would be on the sofa, almost snuggled together, Rose's head comfortable in the crook of his arm. One of his hands would be idly playing with a strand of her hair while the other would be caressing her hand. He could feel her stop breathing sometimes when he did so. He always played it cool…or at least, attempted it. He got the feeling that she was afraid that if she acknowledged his actions, that he would stop them.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

He'd want nothing more than to sit there with her, playing with her hair, caressing her with not a care in the world.

Without her mother, of course.

Mirror

I have to get some bloody sleep.

Rose would often think these words to herself, night after night in front of the mirror in the bathroom across from her room. She'd rub under her eyes, as if rubbing at them would erase the dark circles she found there. Her bloodshot eyes and tired smile would often look back at her.

But that was the thing. As much as she was tired, scared, emotional and sometimes lonely, she always carried that smile.

Well, _almost_ always.

Rose could remember the times where her reflection didn't smile back at her. She didn't want to think about them. She hurt just considering them. The images she'd acquired burned beneath her eyelids.

Most of the time, her smile shined for all to see. Under the dirt, the exhaustion and even the heartbreak sometimes, anyone on any given day could see her smile. It lingered between big and goofy, to half and ghostly. But one way or another, it was almost always there.

The man who put it there, and who would sometimes take it away, not too far behind.

* * *

_Been very nostalgic recently for the Doctor & Rose. _

_It'll do wonders for my updating lol. _

_Thanks for reading!_


	21. Love

Love

He's like fire and ice.

Like explosions under the core of the Earth, and the morning sun resting upon its surface.

The Doctor is all these things and more. He is both infinite and finite.

Those around him exist outside of the Oncoming Storm, only a few attempt to tread it.

Damaged and broken, he was unfeeling. The Doctor didn't think about all that could be, he only thought of that which shouldn't be.

But then he met her. Rose Tyler. And that made all the difference.

When she looked at him, she saw only him. It had been a long time since anyone looked at him the way she did. Of course, he hadn't let himself be seen in such a way, but even if he had, he doubted that anyone could look at him _that_ way. It was a look full of friendship, devotion, complete and utter trust in him. It broke him in a different way. It made him better.

She made him better.

Even after he changed, the look remained. The Doctor feared that with a change of face, her trust would wane…but no, even when he tested it to its limits, even when he didn't deserve it, there it remained.

She haunted him. Even while she was with him, she troubled him still. The Doctor found himself wanting to look at her forever, to touch her until the end of time. Her voice dripped like honey even when her words stung. He didn't tire of her, and he knew that if given the chance, he never would.

He wanted to hold her until the end. Of what? He wasn't sure.

She had said forever. He wanted infinity.

And then came the day he lost her.

He felt the worlds crumbling beneath his feet. Surely, after all he had done, the universe wouldn't do this to him? Not again. Hadn't he paid the price? The Doctor had seen many strands of what had been, what was and what could be and he wanted the tangles to turn and twist in his favor, just this once.

He'd lost everything before, why did he have to lose her too?

She had been his religion, his belief that there was good in the world, and that everything, the pain, suffering, the heartbreak, could be worth it. It was worth it if she could stay with him.

When she said those words…those words that could mean nothing, but because they came from her, he felt that they meant everything. He saw her struggle and knew they were coming, but when they finally fell, he could feel his hearts bursting and crushing.

The Doctor wanted to say those words to her, the ones that she wanted to hear. No one else deserved to hear them more because no one else had saved him the way she had. Would she understand why he couldn't say them to her?

He is fire and ice and those words would surely break him. No one could break him like she could.

Did it need saying? Of course it did.

He loved her from the beginning.

When his hearts beat, they beat for her.

He'd love her until his end and beyond.

*******

Rose's world was so boringly normal before she met the Doctor. Her life was filled with boyfriends, her mum, work and chips. There was no opportunity to be who she was meant to be, because she felt she was nothing important.

She chose to follow him because she had never seen anything close to what he offered her.

But she stayed with him because she could no longer see herself without him. Their lives had tangled far too much to go back to a single strand. Even if she had wanted to, even if there was a choice in the matter, the option never existed. Not for her.

The Doctor was broken when she met him. So tired and lonely. Aching with guilt. Couldn't he see who he was? Not just a Time Lord. Not just brilliant.

He made those around him wish, strive and live for more. The Doctor made people better.

He made _her_ better.

No one had or will ever look at her the way he did. The look that burned in the best and worst of ways.

She wanted to hold his hand until the end, the way they always had. He was strong for everyone, always sacrificing what he wanted for what had to be. Rose wanted to be the person he could keep for himself. She loved him at the beginning without knowing it, she would always love him.

The stars could plummet and burst, and still, she would see only him.

So, as she broke her heart that day, saying those words that she was always so afraid to say, she knew she had to say them. Rose knew of the slim chance of hearing them back, but it didn't matter. The Doctor could do all that he liked. Leave her, replace himself with another, never utter the words she wanted to hear. It wouldn't change a thing.

She said the words because he needed to know that she, that someone in the universe, in the whole of existence, loves him.

Loves him purely and completely for everything he is, was and ever could be.

* * *

_Thank you to _Ewoke6096 _for the prompt. No one had ever asked for this word prompt before. Funny. _

_Who knew I had this lying around in my mind, eh?_

_I would have written more for Rose...but I feel it is apparent how much she loves him.  
_

_Hope you enjoyed :)_


	22. Sick

Sick

"Rose? Where are you, when would you like to go next?" yelled the Doctor. He had been looking for one Miss Rose Tyler for quite awhile. Succumbed to considering the less-creative parts of his brain, he went searching for her in her room. He opened the door with gusto, his wide grin planted on his new face.

The Doctor had lots to smile about after all, he'd changed, regenerated, and Rose still wanted to be with him. It was a miracle in a sense of the word that the Doctor had only begun to recognize when Rose first started traveling with him. The thought of not sharing the universe with her made the Doctor shudder inwardly, something that he would never let her see firsthand.

His grin disappeared completely, however, when he came to a stop once inside her room. The Doctor's eyes scanned her sleeping quarter rather quickly, having a quick and big Time Lord brain and all, when he realized she was laying down on her bed. Rose was sunken in her covers, with closed eyes, her face flushed and appearing quite clammy. Her hair was in disarray around her head. The Doctor wasn't accustomed to seeing her so incapacitated, so…small. Idly, he was surprised with how…

No, no time for those thoughts, he contemplated. So, he buried the end of the sentence deep in the crevices of his mind and returned his focus on what was wrong with Rose.

"Rose! What's the matter?" he kneeled by her bed and reached out to touch her forehead with his palm and was disturbed by how feverish she felt. The Doctor let his hand trail to her cheek, straining to not grip onto her, forcing her to open her eyes. Rose attempted to do just that, failing miserably and then mumbled something that not even the Tardis could begin to interpret.

The Doctor knew there wasn't anything to be afraid of. It was a simple cold or the flu – he'd know just what when he observed her symptoms more closely. But right then, he couldn't get his huge Time Lord of a brain to function properly. All it kept ruminating was how frail she looked, how sick.

He let his hand smooth down her hair, his fingers intertwining themselves with the blond strands. She looked so fragile.

Standing up, he made his way out the door to the med bay to grab what he needed. Later on, he'd make sure to make some tea and soup, Rose would like that. But he couldn't shake the feeling of dread that one day, surely not today and hopefully not soon, Rose would get sick…or…

He buried that thought, along with the rest of them and decided instead to focus on today.

***

Rose could feel the Doctor's hand on her forehead, and even though she could barely move, she cursed herself for not being well enough to enjoy his touch on her skin. All she could feel was the pain aching throughout her body. She tried to open her eyes, but to no avail. She wanted to look at him, but she was thankful in a way that she couldn't because then Rose knew she would only see the worry on his face. The Doctor had changed, but qualities like his didn't, and couldn't change completely.

He was too good.

She didn't want him to see her this way. So useless. So…human. Rose knew it would only remind him of how finite she was.

And how eternal he would always be.

The thought, as much as it saddened her because it would mean he could never fully be hers, also delighted her in a way. The world should always have someone like the Doctor looking after it.

Rose could hear the door open distantly. She hadn't even realized he had left. The thought worried her. The smell of tea wafted through the air and made her throat ache with its dryness. She attempted to shift herself enough to drink, but had barely moved a centimeter before she collapsed onto her pillows again.

She felt his hand reach underneath her hair to her neck, and another at her waist pulling her up. "It's okay Rose, it's okay." He kept repeating himself, his voice sounding like a lullaby and Rose struggled not to fall asleep right then and there. She hated that she couldn't enjoy being in his arms, not the way she wanted to. Rose felt the cold rim of a cup touching her lips and she parted them slightly, allowing the hot liquid to drown in her mouth. It burned, but it felt so good. She heard the clink of the cup being settled down on its saucer somewhere near her bed. She wondered how the Doctor managed to move so without jostling her or letting go of her.

Expecting to feel herself surrendered to her covers and pillows, she was surprised when she wasn't. Still unable to open her eyes fully, she realized that the Doctor was still holding her, rocking her slightly. This was unusual for him, to stand still for so long, but she allowed herself to enjoy it either way.

After awhile, Rose realized she must have fallen asleep, but no, that didn't seem right because the Doctor was still holding her. But sure enough, she could feel his arms still around her, except now…she realized it wasn't a pillow underneath her head or even his arm, but his chest.

Her numb mind came to the stark realization then, that she was cradled on the Doctor's lap and in his arms. Rose felt her heartbeats quicken, thumping loudly against her chest. She tried to breathe evenly, not wanting the Doctor to realize she was awake, not wanting him to let her go just yet.

Rose could feel his hands smoothing down her hair and he seemed to be humming. Once her heart had calmed down and settled into its usual rhythm, Rose realized that she could hear the simultaneous thumping of the Doctor's hearts.

And rather childishly, foolishly, she allowed herself to believe that they were beating only for her.

* * *

_Written for and inspired by _elvespiratesandcowboysohmy, _hope you're feeling better!_

_I miss writing, I hope I have free time for it soon :(_

_Thanks for reading :)_


	23. Nightmare

Nightmare

It was the night after the fireplace.

The Doctor had felt the pain trickle down his insides. He had been feeling it since he came back. It was a mixture of things really. It was Reinette, Rose and the Tardis, past, present and future, seconds and moments, always, never, eternity, and infinity- it was all intertwining in his massive brain and double hearts. He chuckled as he walked down the hallway to his room, silence having since permeated the Tardis. He laughed at the thought that his pain involved the women in his life. How…human, he thought. But he couldn't run from it, he felt he had failed them all.

And deep down, he knew he was right.

A sudden sound from Rose's room made the Doctor stop and listen closely. He couldn't decipher the sound and before he could place his hand on the doorknob, allowing him entry to her room, he heard her yell out. Without stopping to think, he burst the door open, the doorknob long since forgotten.

Once inside, he could see her form, twisting and writhing in what appeared like agony, tangling her up in her sheets. The Doctor ran to her side and tried to hold on to her shoulders. He could see the tears flooding down her cheeks.

"No…Doctor…_no_…come back…please…please…_please_… don't leave me…" Rose was whimpering, strands of her hair pinned to her cheeks with her tears. The Doctor held on tightly to her arms, afraid of letting go. His hearts dripped anew with the pain he had been feeling since he came back. He pushed the thoughts away.

"Rose…_Rose…_wake up, I'm here…it's the Doctor…wake up," he tried to control his voice, but the more the words trailed out of his mouth, the more he could hear the desperation in them.

Then, the Doctor didn't understand how exactly, she snapped out of her nightmare, eyes wide open and searching for the cause of the pressure on her skin. When her eyes met with the Doctor's, he could see all the emotions resurfacing in them. Her eyes wrinkled with anguish and the sobs, from a place so deep the Doctor didn't think it possible, escaped her. Rose held on to the Doctor tightly, he could feel the tears soaking through his shirt. He struggled with his feelings, his own tears choking him. He refused to let them fall.

After awhile, the sobs dissipated, and silence once again returned to the Tardis. He thought she might have fallen asleep, but as soon as he had made his assumption, she detached herself completely from him. The Doctor tried to catch her eyes, so he could reassure her without words, the way he had always been able to, but she purposely didn't look at him. He felt a sudden panic at the unfamiliarity. He knew he deserved it.

"Rose?" there was the desperation again, the fear. Could she hear it too?

After a moment, she said, "You left me." They were such simple words, but the heartbreak in them was so heavy, they made his hearts crumple just to hear them.

What could he say? He _had_ left her.

So he said nothing.

She lifted her head to look at him with her red-rimmed eyes. Dried tears on her cheeks. The Doctor swallowed the lump that had arisen in his throat.

"You loved her. Love her. Whatever," she let a shaky sigh leave her, the words strange on her tongue, "and that's okay. It just hurt. But I'll be okay." She looked down at her hands, desperate for somewhere to focus.

All he could do was stare at her.

It hurt to see her like this. And to think, it was because of him…

Protect her from whom, indeed.

Rose looked up at him again, and his hearts faltered, a feeling he had grown accustomed to since traveling with her. Each time she looked at him, touched him…his hearts betrayed him each time.

"I just know now. That's all. Foolish dreams, yeah? Foolish thoughts. Best left for true and through Earth girls." She whispered.

The Doctor's brow furrowed, confused at the words.

He could see her hand trembling as she inched forward, closer to him on her bed. He swallowed again, the sound echoing in his ears.

But he didn't move.

She drifted her hands up to his face, her touch burning the Doctor in a way he had never felt before. He sat, entranced in her touch. Rose let her hands trail up to his ears.

"I've always loved you. Even when you had those ears," she let her hands tug at them gently, lovingly.

The word stilled him. She had never said it, not like that.

Rose continued, "I think…I think I loved you since that time in the basement…the first time. When you grabbed my hand and yelled 'Run.' You saved my life that night. In more ways than one." She smiled at him, a sad, sweet smile, her hand lingering near his neck, making him tremble.

He wanted to say so much then. That she had saved _his _life and that she continued doing it day after day. The Doctor wanted to say that he hadn't meant to do what he did. How could he explain to her that when he looked at Reinette, he saw what he could never have with Rose? How could he explain that when he went back, that finally time, all he could think of was how much he failed the people in his life…and how everyone and everything has an end?

But, again, he said nothing.

A lonely tear escaped her as she inched forward, even closer to him. The Doctor froze when he realized what she was about to do. A part of him wanted to step back and deal with the consequences, but another part of him, the selfish part, the more human one, willed him to stay still.

He closed his eyes and felt the pressure of her soft lips on his. It was a gentle, sweet kiss – so short, but with a lingering that even the most profound memory could never hope to out live. It made his skin scorch, his hands tremble and his hearts rattle. He wanted very much to tangle his hands in her hair, and pull her closer.

But he didn't.

However, he didn't stop her either.

Eventually she pushes herself away. Her ample cheeks full of color, "Sorry, Doctor."

Sorry? Oh right. The memories of the most recent events come back to him, leaving him feeling empty without her touch.

Pushing herself further away from him, she hides underneath her covers and lays down, facing away from him.

"Goodnight Doctor," he heard her whisper.

Taking his cue, the Doctor got up and left her room.

He knew that things would go back to normal in the morning. They wouldn't talk about the kiss. They'd hold hands and forget what had happened. Well, pretend to have forgotten.

The Doctor closed the door to her room and leaned against it.

He knew what it took for Rose to kiss him. He knew he was a coward. Once a coward, always a coward. It would have been very easy to kiss her back fully and completely. It would be very easy to let himself love her. The way a man should love a woman. He would do anything for her, but he couldn't...wouldn't let himself do this.

And with that, he pushed himself away from her door and walked toward his room.

***

Rose let the final tears escape onto her pillow. She couldn't believe she had kissed the Doctor, let alone told him that she loved him. She was afraid she was hallucinating. Had she truly felt the slight pressure of the Doctor's lips against her own?

Probably not.

They'd wake up tomorrow, pretending this was all just a dream. Or a nightmare, depending on who you ask.

Rose closed her eyes and thought that maybe she could fool herself into believing, just for tonight, that she had felt the Doctor respond to her, his lips on hers.

* * *

_This was a bit different than the rest. Once I get an idea in my mind, I need to get rid of it. So here you go. Haha. _

_Let me know what you think. _

_Thanks for reading!  
_


	24. Wrong

_**DON'T READ IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED WATERS OF MARS**_

_I thought of this the morning after watching Waters of Mars. The Doctor kinda broke my heart at the end of that episode. _

_And I feel the need to say, for Rose's POV, I am purposely using "he" and "you" interchangeably when describing the Doctor. I feel that this shows how Rose would actually see him. Hope it doesn't confuse you, but it makes sense to me. _

* * *

Wrong

How could I have done this?

It was so…_wrong._

Everything about it…felt wrong.

And I did it anyway.

All the time, trying to be oh-so-careful. Timelines, people, events.

Always trying so hard.

And then the one time…my ego took over.

Little people indeed.

This wouldn't have happened if I could have kept something for myself, I argue, fruitlessly. It's an excuse, but I can't help but think that if I had been given _something, _I wouldn't have done what I did.

I could have been strong. I could have had a reason to walk away.

And stay away.

But, like always, I lost.

Always losing. Even when the world was safe and the timelines unchanged, I always lose in the end.

So much happiness in the world. Such wonder.

Why can't I ever grasp and hold onto some of it for a little while?

I lost myself in losing so many others.

And now…I've gone too far.

***

He felt you today. He knew what you had done.

We were going to work, and you were driving. You always did when we were together.

You had to pull over, you were so quiet. I kept asking what was wrong. My heart was crushing with fear. Somehow I knew that it had to be about you.

He said that you had done a very bad thing. I had to stop myself from yelling that it was impossible. But then I remembered what we always said about the impossible.

Your face was crumpled with pain and confusion. I wanted to hug you then, but I was frozen.

"What did you do?" I whispered, fearing your answer.

He looked at me, eyes full of guilt and told me what you had done.

You broke your rule.

I felt the pain of it then.

Tears streamed down my face like an endless waterfall. I closed my eyes tight.

The words reminded me of when I first met you, my leather-shield, broken Doctor.

And I knew that you had no one with you to stop you.

Parallels apart, I still think of you and miss you, even though you're here with me.

But, just like you, I have two hearts, and one is always with you.

He was very quiet, looking far away onto that endless road, mumbling words of guilt under his breath.

And I did what I always did.

I reached over and held his hand.

I wish I could hold yours too.

* * *

_Thanks for reading. _


	25. Truth

The truth was that you didn't need me anymore.

I was foolish to think things would remain the same, that you would still need me.

But you weren't broken. Not anymore.

I saw a glimpse of it on that first adventure of ours. You walked so easily into that lift, when before you would have remained attached to my side.

Always together.

I caught a hint of my future in Sarah Jane. You told me you wouldn't, but even if not by choice, you would leave me.

Then there was the fireplace, and that's when I knew. That's when it was certain – it was written in the stars that you would never be mine. Not really.

So many times I was left behind. I could have gone home, I could have stayed behind, but I did neither. By your side was the only place I wanted to be.

Then there was the day that I died.

Ripped from your side for the rest of time. At least, that's what you told me then on that cold bay. It was cruel. I wanted you to say anything to give me an idea that I meant something to you.

I could see it in your face and in your eyes. But still, you didn't say.

My heart broke that day and it never fully mended. Not until I knew there was a chance of seeing you again.

And I did. I felt you in my arms, your double hearts beating quickly next to my lonely human one.

And we were running again, my hand in yours. I was elated to see that you hadn't forgotten about me and that others knew my name and revered it next to yours.

But then you did what you do best.

You left me.

***

The truth is that you scare me.

How could I explain an eternity of emotions and feelings in a matter of fleeting moments?

Was I a coward? Of course.

Always will be.

It was there since the first moment that I saw you and felt your hand in mine. I told you to run, but somehow I knew that I wanted you to always run with me.

Loving you came easy. It scared me. Me, the Oncoming Storm, was unnerved by a human London shop girl.

You had your life, even if I ripped you from it so selfishly.

And I stole that kiss, knowing full well you wouldn't remember it. I didn't know how the regeneration would unfold, and I wasn't about to leave that stone unturned.

To my surprise, even as a thin pretty boy, I felt that love for you even more.

I didn't think it possible.

And so with the realization came the fear.

And with the fear came the mistakes.

Sarah Jane.

Rickey the Idiot.

Reinette.

Each representing a part of me that I wanted to hide from you. Each one representing a part of my failure.

Each one making you see me more clearly.

I didn't want to lose you. I've never wanted to lose you. And time and time again, that's what kept on happening.

And then came the day of Canary Wharf.

It may have been your name on the list of the dead, but my hearts were the ones that died that day.

Losing you was something I had run away from for so long that when it happened, I didn't know what to do.

All I had to say was that I love you. Time and courage ran out too quickly.

I should have known you would find me again. Seeing your beautiful smile, those golden locks…I had been without them for too long.

And as I felt your hand in mine again, feeling you against me…it all felt so right. And because it did, I knew that it was wrong and wouldn't last.

I was ready this time.

I was prepared for the flood of pain. But I thought that maybe, just maybe, the gift of my human self would help ease your pain. The pain that was always at the center of my attention – always trying to keep it at bay even when I was the one causing it.

Having to hide my words from you for the second time, the millionth time was wrong, but necessary.

Seeing you kiss him, not being able to feel your lips against mine for one last time, caused me the pain I deserve.

I want you to be happy.

Do it for me.

* * *

_What can I say? I saw Rise of the Cybermen and The Age of Steel last night and it made me mad all over again..._

_It must be his oncoming departure...so much gloom in my writing, no funny bits anymore! I'll try harder next time :)_


	26. Bananas & Post Its

Banana

Oh, how the Doctor loves his bananas.

So tasty and squishy, he would eat them all the time while traveling with Rose on the Tardis. She'd giggle at him and tease him about it. He would simply smile, mouth full of banana goodness. It would only make her laugh harder.

Then came the day when he walked into the kitchen to discover his bananas were gone. He panicked - his eyes wide in terror. He begged the Tardis to take him anywhere where he could buy his supply of bananas.

But she refused. Something about his mocking her. Really, how sensitive could she get?

He was frantic, running around looking for a banana when he finally realized that in his search for the perfect treat, he hadn't seen Rose once.

The Doctor was sure she was the banana-thief.

He marched to her room, the Oncoming Storm ready to be unleashed.

Not bothering to knock, it was his Tardis after all, he barged in. There, on her bed sat the young Rose Tyler with a cheeky grin on her beautiful face.

His hearts warmed at the sight. It almost made him forget about his bananas.

Almost.

"Rose," he said, "where are my bananas?" He tried to remain calm, no longer sure if it was the fact that he hadn't had a banana in 2 hours or if it was the sight of Rose on her bed that was making him tremble.

Rose stood up, the cheeky grin taunting him. She walked over to him and placed her hand on his cheek. The warmth stunned him.

Bananas. Remember the bananas, he told himself.

"Bananas," he said, the word dripping seductively off his tongue.

Well, so much for that, he thought.

Then, she tiptoed to reach his ear. The Doctor leaned down to help her out. He could feel her breath on his skin and it made him tremble anew.

"Doctor," she whispered.

He grunted something, words having since lost their meaning.

"Doctor," she repeated, "I ate your bananas." She giggled.

He looked at her, incredulously.

Anyone else, and he would have banned them from the Tardis for taking his bananas.

But for Rose Tyler?

He merely shrugged and leaned down to kiss her smiling lips.

Post-It

Oh, how Rose loves her post-its.

Hot pink ones. They littered the Tardis with her reminders and musings.

What to pick up from the market the next time they were in London.

A quick recipe for banana cupcakes.

The ingredients for that subatomic sludge that kept those man-eating trees away from the Tardis.

Okay, that last one was the Doctor's.

Still, she loved her post-its. Which is why she got so angry the day she wanted to write down her latest reminder and she didn't find them on her dresser.

Irritated, she stormed out to the console room.

That Time Lord was always stealing her post-its.

Annoyed for the last time, she found the Doctor sitting on the console chair. She was about to open her mouth when he turned around suddenly, startling her.

"Rose!" he quickly got down from the chair and enveloped her in a hug. She felt her insides warm at his touch, her irritation long since forgotten.

"I was just about to return these to you," he said, handing over her hot pink post-its.

She smiled up at him, her eyes lingering over the contours of his face.

"We have to remember to buy you some blue ones so you can keep them on your _own _dresser, Doctor," she teased.

He smiled widely as he placed his hand on her cheek. Rose could feel herself blushing and willed herself to stop.

It didn't work.

"Now, why would we do that? It's much more fun this way."

Rose poked him in his side, but giggled just the same.

After planting a kiss on her forehead, he strolled past her, probably heading to the library.

Rose felt the hot blush on her cheeks and walked down the hallway to her room. Once inside, she looked down at the pad of post-its in her hand. She noticed that the one on top had something written on it. Edging closer to the lamp in her room in order to get a better look at the writing, she realized that it wasn't writing at all, but a series of figures.

She recognized it as Gallifreyian writing.

Not having one clue about what it said, she peeled off the sheet and stuck it to her mirror.

Another reminder of her Doctor.

Rose was about to place the post-its on her dresser when on second thought she opened her underwear drawer to place them there instead.

At least if he went looking for them now, he'd have to admit that he had touched her panties.

Chuckling at her thoughts, she walked out of the room in search of her Doctor.

* * *

_Not as funny as some earlier one's I've done, but light and sweet. I think we needed some after all that gloom, yeah?_

_Thanks for reading :)_


	27. Butterfly & Chair

Butterfly

"Look over here Doctor!" yelled Rose.

The Doctor smiled at her excitement. After a few rough adventures, the Doctor found it proper to take Rose somewhere beautiful and peaceful. Somewhere that could make her feel a fraction of how she made him feel. Walking over, he saw that she had picked a few of the bright purple flowers that they were presently engulfed in.

The Doctor chuckled. Rose looked at him in confusion, "What?"

He smiled at his companion. "Those flowers just there," he pointed at the small bundle in her hands, "they are called 'Attravias,' when one touches them, they mix with the person's natural chemistry. It causes an attraction…" he trailed off.

Rose's eyes widened, "What does it attract?" There was a slight panic in her voice.

The Doctor laughed at her expression, "Rose, you could never attract anything remotely beastly…even if you are jeopardy-friendly."

He grinned madly at her. Just as she was about to open her mouth in protest, a single, gorgeous pink and blue butterfly landed on her bundle of flowers. The Doctor couldn't help but beam at her. It was already happening.

Rose looked up to see dozes of butterflies, all different colors of the rainbow, flying around her. Her mouth gaped open in surprise.

Why was she so shocked to realize the beauty she attracted, the wonder? Could she not see the beauty she possessed?

She looked at him just then, her own bright smile causing his hearts to beat so rapidly that they were hammering against his chest. He didn't need anything to mix with her chemistry to feel what he already felt for her everyday.

Chair

She was standing by the doorway to the library, being very careful not to make a sound. Rose was staring at the Doctor, the firelight flickering on his tired and lovely face. He was very still, very quiet in that big and comfortable blue chair of his.

Rose could see that he was reading one of his favorite books, Great Expectations, in an exquisitely worn leather-bound edition. She had memorized all the titles in his humble library. When they weren't running for their lives and the Doctor was seriously busy, she'd spend her time in here, surrounded by the books he loved. She would sit in his chair near the fire – his smell still lingering. It was a smell she could never decipher, no matter how hard she tried.

It was bananas and dust and running and her and something so uniquely _him. _

She wanted to interrupt, to spend some time with her Doctor, but forced herself not to. She contented herself with looking on as he turned yet another page.

* * *

_Light and fluffy. We need it this week._

_Welcome back _elvespiratesandcowboysohmy_! Wasn't the same without you :)_

_Enjoy!_


	28. Lost

Lost

"You didn't really mean that, did you?"

The Doctor looked painfully at Rose, unaware of which part of the day she was referring to. There was so much to answer for.

"Which part?"

His voice sounded hoarse and loud in the large console room. The Doctor was idly aware that Adam was either touring or getting lost in the Tardis – the Doctor didn't care which.

Rose walked toward him. He froze, hunched over the console screen, his hands gripping the railing. She didn't touch him.

"The part," she whispered, "where you said you have nothing left."

The Doctor looked up to her. Her hair was falling in front of her wide eyes. They exhibited pain and worry…for him. She almost died today because of him…and here she was worried about _him_. He remained quiet and in slight awe of her.

Rose swallowed hard, "The thing is…" She looked down and placed her hand gently on his. He tried not to show how her warmth, her proximity, affected him. How it always seemed to affect him. He looked at their hands and up to her again, unable to speak.

She cleared her throat and tried again. "The thing is Doctor…you've got me."

Rose smiled at him warmly. He could feel the heat reaching in like sun rays streaming and heating the cold surface of his rapidly beating hearts. He'd heard her say those words before at the end of their second adventure. She said it with traces of naiveté back then, but this time she knew his darkness, most of his secrets and had seen how reckless he could be…and still, she said those words.

All too soon, her hand left his and she turned around and quietly left the room. The Doctor stayed staring after her long after she'd left. Slowly, his mouth turned up into a grin, the shadows of his mind lessening a tiny bit more.

All because he had Rose Tyler.

***

"Rose?"

Rose looked up to see Adam in the doorway to her room. Had he been calling her for awhile? The slightly frustrated look on his face made her thing, yes.

She smiled half-heartedly at him, not quite feeling in the mood to speak to anyone. It had been a quite eventful day. Too eventful.

"I thought, maybe you want to show me around?" His mouth turned up into a large bright grin. Normally, Rose would have found that smile endearing.

But now? She really wanted him to go away. She needed time to think.

Alone.

"I have a bit of a headache, long day, yeah? Anyway, why don't you get something to eat? The kitchen is down the hall." She smiled at him, but her eyes clearly told him to go away. He smiled, the smile a bit dimmer now, and nodded as he left the doorway in search of the kitchen.

Rose rolled her eyes and laid back on her bed, her fluffy pink pillow supporting her head. She stared up at the ceiling, dots of starlight glistening above her against the dark backdrop. She smiled, despite her melancholy mood. The stars seemed to have always been there, Rose didn't know if they were fake or if the Tardis somehow made it for real stars to adorn her room. She stroked the wall behind her head absentmindedly.

She couldn't get the look on the Doctor's face out of her mind. Standing beside that Dalek thing, he aimed toward her, ready to shoot. Would he have done it if she had moved away? Rose didn't want to think about that, preferring to think of the fact that he put the gun down. She closed her eyes and leaned her head further back into the pillow.

Rose wanted the Doctor to know that she would always be there for him. She wasn't sure if she could go back to a time in which he wasn't so important to her. Anytime before him now felt like…like if she was lost. And meeting him, it was like finding her Northern Star. It was like he had always been important…like this, what they were doing and who they were to each other, was always supposed to happen.

Maybe it was.

Letting out a heavy sigh, she felt her skin tingle at the memory of her hand on his. She let the feeling ride out.

"That was an awful heavy sigh Ms. Tyler."

Her eyes snapped open. The Doctor was standing in her doorway, leaning against it, his arms folded in front of his chest. The sight of him brought an immediate huge smile to her face. Rose felt her heart do a flip-flop.

Darn her one and only human heart.

"Something wrong?" he asked, his mouth still upturned in a smile.

She chuckled softly. If he only knew.

"Nah, just tired I guess." He nodded, understanding. Somewhat.

"Ready for another adventure?" there was a hint of a promise in the question.

"Always," she replied without hesitation.

He looked at her for a long moment and then left to make his way down the hallway to the console room. Rose's heart continued to beat rapidly as she listened to his departing steps. She felt her whole life rested on each thump his heavy boots made on the hard floor.

Rose doubted anyone's steps would ever mean as much as her Doctor's.

* * *

_*sigh* I miss my second Doctor already. This was written for my first, but I felt that fan fiction must remain hopeful…if only for fan fiction itself :)_

_Miss you David! _


	29. Room & Dream

Room

The Doctor heard her crying quietly in her room.

They had just come in from the fallen-ash sky, their Christmas dinner long since done with. He was looking for her to tell her that the Tardis would be up and ready to go by the next morning. He'd expected her to be delighted at spending the night at her mother's place. And he actually didn't mind, the change had made him softer that way it seemed.

So, he wasn't expecting her to be in tears.

Knocking softly on the door, he heard her sniffle and gave him permission to go in. He opened the door and walked in. The room didn't look too different than the one she had on the Tardis, the one he had come to consider her _real_ room. The Doctor suspected that Rose had begun thinking that as well.

The walls were bright pink and there was a bit of clutter on the floor. Rose was sitting on her bed, the pink comforter and pillows looking quite inviting. The Doctor walked over and sat down beside her. Their shoulders and arms touched, their heat building between them. He ignored the feelings that swam through him. They were so strong when he was tall and big-eared…now, it seemed as if it were magnified hundreds, thousands and millions of times.

"What's wrong then?" the words were right, but their order no longer felt natural. He sighed, always hating noticing the small things that changed with regeneration. The Doctor hoped Rose wouldn't notice…or mind…too much.

Rose took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. Looking over to him, the Doctor could see a multitude of emotions running through those honey eyes. And he knew that there was a battle between them in her mind and heart. He could see her happiness at him being there, but also sadness. Being all too familiar with the battle, he wasn't surprised.

"It's just…" she hesitated, not wanting to hurt him, he figured. He knew what was coming.

She took another deep breath and tried again. "It's just that…I know it's you, yeah? I can see it. I can hear it. Your hand…it feels just right, like always…but…" There was the hesitation again.

The Doctor tried his best to beat down the irrational jealousy. It was still him, after all. He would try to help her get through this…he needed her to come with him. He felt he would need her always. There would not be a time where he wouldn't want her there.

"But…?" he pushed further.

Then, Rose raised her hand and fixed a strand of his unruly hair, smoothing it back for him. His eyes widened at the touch, but he didn't so much as mumble or breathe. She let her hand trail from his hair to the side of his face. As if suddenly realizing what she was doing, she took back her hand hastily and chuckled nervously.

"I just miss the old you. I didn't know what was happening…and I…I didn't know what to say. I know its still you…but still…" She smiled half-heartedly at him, not wanting to upset him.

He smiled at her, appreciating the fact that she was trying her best to be okay with what had happened. She was doing brilliantly, and he told her so. She simply smiled back at him. The Doctor leaned toward her and placed his arm around her shoulders. He felt her shake a bit beneath his touch.

"I am still the same Doctor, just with a younger face. Thank you for missing me though…I wasn't the _easiest_ Doctor."

Rose smiled and leaned her head against his chest. Placing a hand against his hearts, feeling them thump rapidly against it, her smile grew and a single tear left her eye.

"You were fantastic Doctor. And you know what?" she looked up at him suddenly.

The Doctor shook his head, startled, not knowing where this was going because he was just trying very hard to control the emotions that were flooding him just then.

She smiled widely, her teeth peeking through.

"You still are," she whispered, as she leaned forward to kiss him on the cheek. Then, she patted him on the leg and got up and left the room.

The Doctor sat there for awhile, wondering how in the world he had gotten so fortunate to have that clever, brilliant human in his existence. He smiled, no one to witness the brilliance of it, as he relished in the feeling of loving one little human so very much.

Dream

Rose was sitting down on her mum's couch, waiting for the Doctor to come in with the tea. Being as she was always the one preparing it, she was surprised when the Doctor offered to this time. Perhaps it was because her mum was out shopping for Christmas supper with Mickey. Rose was feeling a bit out of it, so she had declined joining them.

The truth was, she felt like there was something tugging at her memory, like a dream that she couldn't remember. It was holding on at the edge of awareness so relentlessly that it was actually getting to be painful. It had been bothering her since she had woken up on the grating in the Tardis. It felt like an itch so deeply embedded in her skin that she just couldn't reach it.

"Finally," said the Doctor, walking in with a mug of steaming tea in each hand, "give me a Auton, give me a locked door…but when it comes to making tea quickly, I'm simply rubbish." He handed Rose a mug and remained standing for a minute, cocking his eyebrow, "Well, that's not fair…not rubbish. I'm fantastic." He grinned madly as he sat down next to her.

Rose smiled, not really paying attention to his blabbering. She kept staring at him, wondering how he could be so similar to his previous self and yet so different. The itch at her memory was bothering her still.

The Doctor kept on talking, "Can you believe that Harriet? The nerve. However, it will be confusing to her why everyone keeps asking her if she needs a doctor." He chuckled.

Rose's head snapped up to look at the Doctor. He was drinking his tea and smiling at her. There was something in what he just said that tugged at the itch she had been feeling. The words…what was it about them...

_I think you need a Doctor._

Then, rapidly, the images that had been plaguing her from their hidden place in her mind all came at her, flooding her. Rose felt she was drowning in them and the feelings that accompanied each one.

"You kissed me," she said, interrupting the Doctor's current rant.

He looked at her, nearly dropping his tea, his eyes having grown wide with fear and something else. Rose kicked herself mentally for talking without thinking first. Maybe she was confused…

"Um," he coughed loudly, placing his mug on the coffee table, "yeah."

Now it was Rose's turn to be surprised. She wasn't expecting him to oblige her with a direct answer. They sat there for awhile just staring at each other, neither willing nor able to break the silence first.

Eventually, Rose broke it. The silence was doing nothing to calm her speeding heart. She only had the one after all.

"It was…it was to save me from the vortex…yeah?" She didn't know why she was doing it, but she was giving the Doctor a way out. Rose didn't want him to take it, but he _was_ the Doctor.

She watched him as he ran his hands through his new brown, sadly not ginger, locks. He was nervous, anyone could see that. Heart beating a mile a millisecond, she wondered how she must look to him. She was suddenly so very aware of the small distance between them and the fact that they were in the flat…alone.

The Doctor stopped moving around and simply looked at her. Rose felt her heart skip a beat under his intense stare. In an instant, she could feel the swell of oceans and the rotation of the earth just by looking into them. Unknowingly, she was holding her breath and didn't know why.

"Actually," he whispered, his normal manic momentarily gone, "I could have saved you from it…without the kiss." The Doctor looked at her, gauging her reaction.

"Oh." _What does that mean_, Rose asked herself. She cleared her throat, not knowing what they were doing here, what rules they were breaking. "So, why did you?" She knew she probably shouldn't have asked, but couldn't stop herself from doing so.

He didn't stop looking at her, didn't even flinch at the question. And simply said, "Because I wanted to."

If her heart was skipping beats before, it was completely stuttering right then, unable to regain its normal rhythm. Rose opened her mouth, but didn't know what to say. She did, however, start moving closer to the Doctor, wanting him to kiss her the way he had done before. She wanted to feel it completely, savor it…live in it.

There was no hope for her heart to normalize when she realized the Doctor was inching his face toward hers as well.

They were so close to that kiss, Rose could feel the Doctor's shallow breathing on her lips. His scent was grabbing at her memory, enticing her skin and killing her control completely.

She felt the Doctor raise his hand to her cheek, caressing it achingly slow with his fingertips. It was such a simple touch, but it left a trail of fire in its wake. Rose felt that, had she been conscious of anything else, she would notice that her body was shaking. But right now, all that existed was the Doctor and his touch on her skin.

Rose inched forward, about to close the distance between them…so close…

"Mickey, carry that bag will ya?!" they heard Jackie yell outside the door as she fumbled with the lock.

The moment broken, the Doctor removed his hand from Rose and grabbed his tea, eager to move his attention elsewhere.

Reacting much more slowly, Rose leaned back on the couch and concentrated on breathing normally.

Darn her mum's timing.

Looking at the Doctor, his ears tinged with red, Rose couldn't help but smile at this new discovery.

_Oh well_, she thought, she'll make sure they continue their discussion tomorrow in the Tardis, millions of miles and decades away from any escape.

* * *

_I miss Ten. However, it has become easier to write light, fluffy, and happy fan fiction. Don't know why. _

_Hope you like :)_


	30. Valentine's Day: Coat & Page

Coat

Rose was lying back on his coat, looking up at the violet sky, the moons up and shining. There was a slight breeze and strands of her hair were gently whipping around her face. Her eyes were closed and a bright Rose smile was planted on her lips. These were the moments the Doctor loved most…the moments where he could look at her the way he wanted to without guilt. He let his eyes roam around the contours of her face. The dips and curves of her lips and chin mesmerized him.

Then, suddenly, Rose opened her eyes and stared straight at him. Startled, he was thankful he didn't blush easily. There was something about the way she looked at him, the way she _always_ looked at him, that made his hearts beat too fast, made his hands tremble and, for a moment, made him forget.

"I've never seen a purple sky before," she whispered, her eyes teasing him and full of emotion the Doctor always had to ignore.

He grinned at her as he made his way to sit next to her. The Doctor felt odd not having his coat on him, it was a vulnerability he didn't like experiencing, but for that day, on that planet with the violet sky above them and most of all, for the lonely human lying with him, he would do anything.

Page

The Doctor was reading his favorite Agatha Christie mystery while sitting comfortably in his armchair. Every once in awhile, his lips would twitch into a smile, so deeply engrossed in his favorite tale. Rose was sitting on the couch, her own book forgotten on her lap. She stared at the Doctor, loving the freedom in simply looking at him.

Rose's eyes roamed over the wildness that was his famous hair, his nerd-glasses that she loved so, the wideness of his eyes glued to the page. The little twitch in his lips hypnotized, teasing her. She knew the Doctor didn't have to read slowly, his Ninth self had explained that, but she was happy to see he was content enough to slow things down.

She stared at his hands when she heard him clear his throat. Feeling the heat rush to her cheeks, she looked up and found him looking at her, his lips in a bright smile. Rose smiled in response and rolled her eyes at the teasing in his eyes.

"Oh, shut it," she chuckled and lifted her book, hiding her blushing cheeks.

***

_My little gifts to my very loyal and wonderful readers. I've been so busy with school that I haven't responded to reviews, but I will! You all may forget what you said by the time you get my replies but oh well lol _

_These aren't overtly Valentine's Day-ish, but I just see them as always caring about each other - no need for a special day to remind them of it :)_

_Hope you liked!_


	31. Box & Poster

Box

He tried to ignore it. But there it was, just sitting there in her closet…just…_mocking_ him. The Doctor could have gone the rest of his regenerations with a bout of peacefulness…well, a notion of it at least, if it weren't for that darned thing sitting on the floor of Rose's bedroom closet.

It had sat forgotten until one day when the Doctor was looking for the extra part of his nylex manipulator and wondered if maybe Rose had put it away (though why he thought this may be possible, in her room no less, he hadn't the faintest idea). In his search for it, however, he noticed the vile thing sitting in the corner, _taunting_ him. Seriously, whoever thought of putting that in the vicinity of any Time Lord?

They were curious creatures they were.

The Doctor heard a soft cough behind him. Wincing at the idea of being caught, he turned to see Rose's smirking face behind him, one of her hands on her hip.

"Doctor, what are you doing? You're glaring at the inside of my closet again." There was humor tangled in her words.

Sighing, because it was really embarrassing to have so much hatred of such a simple object, he turned to face her. He knew she was laughing at him, a silent, adorable sort of laughter only she could produce._ But it wasn't simple at all!_ he wanted to argue with her. It held everything that she kept from him – and to him, that was simply too irresistible.

Rose stepped forward and reached for his arm until she trailed her hand down to his and intertwined their fingers. The Doctor felt himself shiver.

He let Rose lead him out of her room, her mouth unable _**not**_ to find itself to a smile. The Doctor sighed sadly.

All because of a box. Blimey.

Poster

Rose was busy lifting the poster above her bed when the Doctor's voice startled her.

"Rose have you seen my…" he semi-shouted while barging into her room, causing her to shriek, lose her footing and land on her bum on the bed with a loud creak.

The Doctor looked up at her, raised an eyebrow and hid a chuckle, Rose saw. She narrowed her eyes at him and proceeded to get the poster from where it fell on the floor and tried once again to find its perfect location on the wall above her bed. It had turned quiet in the room, but Rose knew the Doctor was still standing by the door, watching her. She always knew when he did so because she could feel his eyes on her as if he were using his fingertips instead. Shaking her head, she concentrated on the task at hand. It was safer to think of that instead of what she _actually_ wanted to think about.

As she let the print of Van Gogh's _Starry Night_ flip back into place, and silently asked the Tardis to set it for her, she could almost feel the Doctor's question before he even bothered to ask it.

"_Starry Night_? Really? You do know where you are, right Rose?" he was teasing her again, but Rose didn't care. She looked at him and smiled. The Doctor's eyes offset somehow and his laughter died on his lips.

"I like it for what it says, Doctor," she replied, simply.

_And what it represents_, she thought, silently.

Rose looked on as the Doctor stepped forward nearer to the bed to look at the print more closely. There were words in elegant script at the bottom of it:

_**In one of the stars I shall be living**_

_**In one of them I shall be laughing**_

_**And so I will be as if all the stars**_

_**Were laughing when you look at the sky at night**_

_**The Little Prince**_

_**- Antoine de Saint-Exupery**_

She saw the Doctor grow quiet and then she heard him say, "Ah" as if the little incantation had answered all his questions.

Maybe it did.

Shrugging, clearly and suddenly uncomfortable, Rose tried to back-track, "It's silly when we have all of time and the universe outside our front door, yeah?" The word '_our'_ hung in the air between them, electricity pulsing through it. The Doctor smiled, not widely or outrageously as he was accustomed to, but rather sweetly as he lifted a knee and pressed it suddenly on the bed, causing her to lose her balance and fall forward. Rose heard a shriek escape her throat and was expecting to feel the floor under her when she fell, but all she could feel were the Doctor's arms around her, lifting her slightly off the ground. He had his hands on her lower back, dangerously close to areas that have always been avoided when it came to hugs and such. Rose's breathing hitched and her heart sped up as she let the feeling wash over her. The feeling of being…utterly _complete_ in his arms.

The Doctor smiled tenderly at her as he set her safely on the ground. After kissing her sweetly on her forehead, and gave her a squeeze of her elbow with his gentle hand, he left her room the way he came.

Rose sat on her bed, as completely perplexed and in love as ever.

* * *

_I'm aware that Rose's story is longer than the Doctor's - what can I say? I get a bit carried away (that rhymed ha).  
_

_I bet you thought I'd forgotten about my babies (Thoughts), the ones that started it all...but NOPE! I've just been busy heh. _

_I hope you like :) As always, let me know if you have any words you'd like to request Thoughts for :D_

_Thanks for reading!  
_


	32. Couch & Picture

Disclaimer: You should know, but I'll put it here anyway - the characters or anything resembling anything don't belong to me. I just play with them for awhile and give them right back. ha.

* * *

Couch

The Doctor was sitting on the long dark green couch in the library, staring across to the fireplace. Wearing his striped pajamas and the blue robe (he never did give them back), he lifted his fingertips to massage his temples. He had allowed himself to sleep awhile since he had an excruciating day of thinking (yet again) that he had lost Rose. She had headed off to bed with not so much as a trace of fear on her face. The Doctor idly feared that she had become too accustomed to this life of theirs.

_Theirs_.

Shaking his head, and with it all the intentions that word provided, he thought about why he had awoken so suddenly from his rare slumber.

He was about to think about the dream again, to analyze what it could possibly mean, if anything (who was he kidding? Everything meant something, didn't it?). But he really, _really_ didn't want this dream to mean anything. While arguing with himself, he heard Rose walk in, her bare feet pattering against the floor of the Tardis. He turned to look at her smiling lips, her bright eyes. The image brought a tentative smile to his lips. He noticed suddenly how this worried her as she sat down next to him. She was wearing black shorts and a plain white shirt, her hair piled messily above her head – she had never looked so beautiful.

"Doctor what is it?" there was a slight worry in her voice. He fought to keep his memories from resurfacing.

He wanted to tell her everything…

But if what he saw were to come true…

The dream had already broken his hearts, could he break hers too?

Picture

The photograph was faded, a picture capturing the Doctor in a moment in time before she had met him. Her leather-clad, broken Doctor with the ocean-blue eyes. Rose touched the photo gingerly with her fingertips, not wanting to waste away more than it already was. It would have been taken around the same time…

_No, Rose…don't do that_, she thought to herself. _It was only a dream_.

But what if it wasn't?

The Doctor in the picture was her previous Doctor – and it was taken before she was even a thought, a blimp in his timeline. The present Doctor, the manic-mouthed, sometimes rude Doctor hadn't been back to that time, and there was no way he would go without her, unless…

_No_.

Her mind refused to think about it. Denial may be an age old defense – but it still did the trick.

"Rose?" his voice, gentle and soothing, awoke her from her reverie. She turned to him and smiled, unsure of what to say to him.

The Doctor looked at the photo in her hand and smiled sadly, already deducing what was going through her mind, she suspected.

"I knew I shouldn't have told you," he said simply, an exasperated sigh escaping him.

Tucking the photo in the canister she found in the library, she shook her head, "Don't worry about it Doctor. It was only a dream…right?" Her voice held trails of hope and desperation. All Rose wanted was for him to tell her it was only a dream, even when she knew it wasn't. She knew that the Doctor's dream of being human in 1913 and in love with…

She shrugged the thought away as she knew that it would happen eventually, somehow…and that the woman wouldn't be her.

But for once, just this once, she wanted the Doctor to lie to her.

So he did.

* * *

_*sigh* I really did mean to write something light and fluffy and not so angsty. But see, this is what happens when you read _Human Nature_ fics before writing your own stuff. _

_I hope you like it and thanks for reading. I promise happy fluff next time!_

_Oh, does anyone notice the little link between these one-shots and one of my others? I added it at the last second. It's very minor so no worries if you don't see it heh. _

_Thanks again!_


	33. Water & Strawberry

Water

It was humid.

For once, the Doctor lacked the frantic, manic energy that powered him. It had drained from his body for the moment. They were momentarily stuck on the planet of Soania and it had the reputation for being one of the most humid planets in existence. Luckily, the Tardis had chosen to strand itself near a small lake, the water allowing some relief for Rose as she dunked herself and swam while the Doctor tinkered.

Although his Time Lord superiority caused him to have a cool body temperature, the sticky humidity was so bad that even he was feeling it. Suffocated by the underbelly of the Tardis, he wiped his hands on a towel as he walked out to see how Rose was doing. Lifting his head, he promptly dropped the towel on the green dirt below him.

The Doctor's jaw dropped as he drunk in the vision before him. Rose was standing in the lake, most of her skin exposed as she was wearing a bathing suit that was not quite a bikini but that left her bare enough that it was close to one. He hadn't noticed her leave the Tardis earlier as he was stuck fixing his beloved machine. The suit was dark purple, much like midnight on the planet of Eternitis, and it left absolutely, almost-nothing, to the imagination. It's board straps on her smooth shoulders trailed down and dipped tantalizing to her chest and as she faced away from him, he could see that it was almost backless, only a thin strap across her shoulder blades. All of this led down to her muscular, tanned legs that disappeared under the water.

She was so beautiful.

All of the things he had seen and would see and still, he knew that it couldn't compare to seeing her now in this moment, in the water, droplets glistening in the sunlight against her tanned skin, her blond hair falling just above her shoulders.

The Doctor swallowed hard and chose to turn around and hide under the heart of the Tardis.

Strawberry

Rose let her tongue trail over the small strawberry in her mouth until she finally bit into it, its juice exploding between her teeth.

There was a book open in her lap, _The Once and Future King_ by T. H. White. Back home, she wasn't one to read much. After failing to do anything with her studies, she felt that books were better left to people who could appreciate them. And after working long days, the last thing she wanted was to sit down and read.

But now? With everything she had seen, it had come to her attention that books were like the planets in the universe – they could give her so much. And when the traveling would stop (because she knew that even though she promised him forever, she knew in her gut and in her heart that she wouldn't be giving him forever – one way or another…but enough about that), she would need something to help her. And books? Well, they were the best weapon, weren't they?

So she sat lazily on her favorite armchair in the library, her legs draped over its arm, her head resting against its back, cradled by the curve there. It was deep blue and smelled faintly of her Doctor. She sat and was absentmindedly eating strawberries, letting her tongue twirl around them before biting into each one as the magic unfolded within her imagination.

"Rose, will you please stop that," said a voice suddenly, causing Rose to nearly drop her bowl of strawberries.

She looked up to see that the Doctor was standing over her, a strange look on his face.

"Stop doin' what?" Her mouth was full with a not-yet-chewed strawberry and her forehead crinkled in confusion as she held on to the bowl in one hand and her book in the other.

The Doctor sighed, "What you're doing with the strawberries."

The crinkling grew, "You want me to…stop…holdin' 'em?"

He sighed again, more frustrated than before as he reached down, took her bowl and he stormed out of the library.

He was so weird sometimes.

* * *

_You were probably expecting Rose's POV to be something sexy about the Doctor. I did too, but I couldn't resist making the Doctor sweat a bit more. Lol. _

_Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed!_


	34. Grapefruit & Silver

Grapefruit

"I don't understand it," whined the Doctor.

"You don't have to understand it, just eat it," snapped Rose.

His eyebrows rose, "Now, who's the rude one?"

She rolled her eyes as she rolled the grapefruit across the table to the Doctor.

"I'm not being rude, Doctor," stated Rose.

"Still," he said, ignoring her, his fingers spinning the vile fruit in front of them, "I don't know what it is. It's not a melon, though it looks like a small cousin of one. And it looks like an orange, but it doesn't taste like one. It's too confusing to eat."

Looking at him, slightly awestruck at his deduction, she concluded simply, "You're mad."

"Yeah," he grinned maniacally.

They were quiet for a moment. The Doctor was still spinning the grapefruit and Rose was staring at him doing so.

"Why is it so important anyway?" he asked suddenly, his nimble fingers still twirling the fruit.

Rose grinned slightly and blushed profusely.

"Just…thought you should…eat…it," she stumbled out. Her hands were suddenly the most important items in existence.

The Doctor stopped spinning the fruit and looked up at his lovely, brilliant companion.

"Rose Tyler, are you trying to keep me healthy?" There was a ring of laughter in his words.

"Yeah," her cheeks were still crimson.

She dared a look at the Doctor only to find him still grinning crazily.

"Too domestic?" she asked, suddenly fearful of him finding it so.

The Doctor's maniac grin melted into a softer smile.

"No, just domestic enough."

Silver

Rose was sitting on a bench in front of a gorgeous lake that looked purple in the bright light on the planet the Doctor said was called _Jula_. While sitting there, waiting for him to join her, she stared out onto the water and allowed herself to just _be_. So much time was spent running and saving that they hardly ever just stood still. Rose knew that the Doctor preferred it that way. She knew that the running and the saving and joking kept all the memories at bay. If it meant that he wouldn't hurt, she didn't mind.

Her reverie was broken when the Doctor dropped heavily onto the bench beside her. He looked…strange.

And for him being the Doctor, well, that was saying something.

"Doctor, are you okay?" there was obvious worry in her voice.

He glanced at her briefly before he distracted himself with the lake.

"It's a beauty, isn't it?" he asked, changing the subject.

Rose sighed, growing tired of the game, but letting him play it anyway.

"It's gorgeous." It was one of the most exquisite sights she'd ever seen.

Her brow crinkled, a question that kept bothering her repeating over and over in her mind, "Doctor? What are we doing here? It's so…" How could she ask without sounding completely mental for wondering so?

"Peaceful?" he offered.

He still wouldn't look at her, but she grinned anyway, her teeth shining.

"Yeah."

Clearing his throat, he reached into his endless pockets and withdrew a box. He handed it to her brusquely and continued watching the gentle waves in the large lake.

He still wouldn't look at her and for once, she didn't feel scared because of it. Maybe it was because he had closed himself off so much recently…ever since…

Rose refused to think about the horse and the mirror and France.

She handled the box he had roughly shoved into her palm and just looked at its purple velvet exterior for a moment.

Finally opening the box, its creak the only sound between them, her mouth gaped at the sight. Inside, there was a silver necklace. It was so simple and delicate. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. Nothing, not even the gem of a lake in front of her could compare to this piece he had given her. It was a silver necklace composed of two strands: one was solid and smooth and the other was made up of tiny links. Within those links, there were the smallest pale pink gemstones. It reminded her of the stars.

Rose looked to the Doctor, surprised to find him staring at her – a strange look in his eyes. It made her heart skip a beat.

"I…I thought you might enjoy a day off – so to speak. And I was looking for that extra part for the Tardis and I saw this…thought you might like it," he answered the questions that had been flooding in her eyes.

And added a whole bunch of new ones.

She took a deep breath, "It's…its stunning Doctor. Thank you."

Making to put it on, the Doctor hurriedly took the chain in his own hands and made to place it around her neck. Rose was surprised at the gesture, finding it intimate. It contradicted everything he had done in the recent weeks.

She swiped her hair so that it wouldn't get in his way. His fingers brushed her neck slightly and the sensation made her pulse quicken and her breathing stutter.

Once clasped, he lingered there for a moment. A moment that stopped time. It was impossible, but right there and then – it felt completely and utterly possible.

It almost felt like…

He pulled away from her finally and she looked down at her gift. It glistened in the light, its shine almost piercing.

She looked toward the Doctor, ready to again thank him when the look on his face stopped her.

If it were any other man, on a more ordinary planet, and she thought he might have kissed her.

Instead, the moment passed, and his maniac grinned returned as he grabbed her hand to pull her away to another adventure.

* * *

_I'm back! So I don't know why I haven't updated...just...I've been rather active over at livejournal, and you know. Anyway, hope this makes up for some of it. _

_Thanks for reading!  
_


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